REVIEW TOPICS

Full
Review

In 2009, Alpen released the
Wings binocular line. Wings binoculars are a significant departure from
previous Alpen binoculars in two ways. First, they make use of a structural
design that is becoming increasingly popular these days: the double-hinge
or “open bridge” frame. Second, the Wings were the first ED glass
binoculars down in the affordable price range of about $400. Alpen Wings
binoculars also come in non-ED glass versions, though we won’t be reviewing
those here. Alpen did a great job with the development of the Wings ED
binoculars and we really like them.

Physical
Properties

Alpen Wings ED are full-sized,
42-mm roof prism binoculars available in 8x and 10x magnifications. Wings
binoculars are fairly compact at just 5.9 inches tall (with eyecups fully
extended) and 4.9 inches wide across the barrels. Our postal scale measured
the weight of the 8x42 at 24.2 oz without the objective lens caps on,
while the 10x42 was a tad lighter at 23.7 oz. The objective lens caps
add another 0.7 oz. Anything under 25 oz on a full-sized, 42-mm binocular
is excellent. The barrels are covered in Alpen’s customary forest green
rubber armoring, with the eyecups, hinges and focus knob providing black
accents. As with most roof prism binoculars today, the Wings are completely
sealed and nitrogen-purged to be waterproof, dust-proof and internally
fog-proof. Eye relief on Wings ED binoculars is a comfortable 17 mm on
the 8x model, but only 15 mm on the 10x version, which may be a bit short
for some users who wear glasses.

Optical
Properties

One of the first things to
notice about the Wings ED binoculars is their startling clarity. Somehow,
you just don’t expect this kind of brightness in a $400 binocular. It
would be tempting to ascribe this just to the ED glass, but it’s more
than that. Wings ED binoculars have fully multi-coated lenses and the
prisms receive Alpen’s proprietary PXA™ phase-coating for superior
resolution and better color fidelity. We found the image of the Wings
ED binoculars to be completely color neutral, which, along with their
excellent contrast, helps generate that clean, bright image. Comparison
of Wings ED binoculars to non-ED binoculars in the same price range (and
even a few that were more expensive) reveals that they are consistently
brighter than the non-ED competition. Wings ED binoculars do show some
edge effects or field curvature. This is particularly evident in the amount
of pin-cushioning they show – the tendency for straight edges to bow
inward at the outer edges of the field of view. There was some chromatic
aberration visible, again primarily limited to the field edges, but not
more than we would expect. Alpen lists the Wings ED binoculars as having
a 393-foot field of view at 1000 yards on the 8x version, while the 10x
model comes in at 330 feet. Relative to other 42-mm roof prism binoculars,
this is a slightly above average field of view for a 10x and significantly
above average for an 8x.

Focusing

Wings ED binoculars have a
broad central focus knob that is covered with strips of rubber armoring
that improve the grip. The focusing action is smooth and easy without
being loose. We measured the minimum close focus on the 8x model at about
7 feet, and about 7.5 feet on the 10x model. To get from minimum close
focus to infinity takes about 1.7 turns of the focus knob, which is a
bit longer than average for edge-to-edge. But part of this comes down
to where you are in the range. Starting at the minimum close focus, it
takes a ¼ turn to hit a focal distance of 8 feet, and another ¼ turn
to hit 10 feet. Continuing this, you get to about a 20-foot focal distance
at not quite one full turn. In other words, from 20 feet to infinity occurs
in about 0.7 turns. Put another way, most of your nature viewing is going
to occur in a distance range that is covered by relatively minimal focal
adjustment, which is just how it should be.

Adjustable Features

The diopter adjustment mechanism
on the Wings ED binoculars is very basic: a simple twist-ring located
at the base of the right ocular lens. A white dot on the ring lines up
with a raised vertical line in the rubber armoring to indicate the position
for equal eyes. The ring also has a series of notches on either side of
the white dot, which will help you remember the approximate correct position
of any setting for unequal eyes, which is a nice little refinement. The
eyecups adjust with a helical twist mechanism; counter clockwise to raise
them and clockwise to lower them. There is one fully stable position between
fully in and fully out. It’s simple, and elegantly efficient. Alpen
Wings binoculars have an unusually broad interpupillary distance range
of 54-73 mm. This means they will be comfortable for most people, especially
those with narrower faces.

Rainguard and Lens Caps

The rainguard is made of soft
black rubber and is comprised of two deep cups linked by a flexible bridge.
It fits easily and snugly over the eyecups and doesn’t dislodge accidentally.
There are brackets on each cup to thread the binocular strap through,
with the left one being gapped so that it may be detached from the strap
if one prefers. This is an excellent rainguard, completely functional
without any major drawbacks in design. The objective lens covers are made
of the same soft black rubber.

These are tethered lens caps
with the caps joined by a short linker to rings that fit over the barrels
of the binocular. The caps themselves have a shallow groove running around
the inside of the cap; the rim of the objective lens barrel fits tightly
into the groove, which makes the cap stay on the binocular. It works quite
well, with one slight flaw: Alpen made the ring that fits over the barrel
too loose, with the result that the entire lens cap assembly can come
off the binocular fairly easily. We presume they are working to fix this;
in the meantime, Alpen is very good about shipping out replacement lens
caps when they are lost.

Case
and Strap

The soft case is kind of an
interesting departure from usual, being a sort of clamshell design with
a double-zipper closure. The case has its own cordura strap. Inside the
case is a removable “holster” that can be used as a belt carrying
case. The holster features an elastic snapping closure to secure the binocular
inside it when it’s not in use.
The case is way larger than needed to hold just the binocular and holster,
so it easily accommodates even a harness-type strap as well. The strap
supplied with the Wings ED binoculars is Alpen’s “premium, wide”
strap, a hybrid of cordura ligated to a stretchy, broad, foam-padded neck
section with wide leather patches. This strap is more than comfortable
enough to support the lightweight Wings EDs, but Alpen sells a harness-type
strap separately for those who prefer it. Also included in the box with
Wings ED binoculars is a soft lens cloth for use in cleaning the binocular.

Conclusions

Overall, we really enjoyed
using the Alpen Wings ED binoculars. The minimal weight of the optic and
its double-hinge design make it very comfortable to use. The image was
bright and sharp. Focusing was smooth and precise. Most of the peripheral
features were generally simple and functional, while some exceeded expectations.
On the whole, Alpen Wings ED binoculars deliver a lot of performance at
a relatively low price. We think the Wings will really take off (sorry!)
for Alpen once the word gets out.